Missing Willow Farm

Gratuitous adorable lamb photo because there are no photos of yesterday’s discovery.  The good news is our guardian dogs killed a snake in our pasture… the bad news is there was a serpent in our pasture!!!  I hate this time of year, and the rest of the warm months when those legless lizards are on the move.  I grew up in Florida and was terrorized by them my entire childhood.  Chased around the yard by one?  Yep.  Slammed one in the front door trying to get in?  Check.  7 foot rattler waiting for us at our bus stop?  Yep, and a deputy had to come shoot it before they let us of the school bus.  Coral snakes in the yard?  More than once.  And hognose rattlers.  And diamondbacks.  Oh, and the water moccasins when we lived on the lake.  What’s that under the refrigerator?  Lovely discovery.  Just last year I dug one up in a flower bed with a hand trowel.  My heart almost burst open!  At least I can spot one a mile away now, I think my brain constantly scans the ground for them.  Thank goodness Brian’s not afraid of them!  If he was, we’d probably have to move somewhere really cold.

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We got our annual delivery of compost.  I think it’s about 2 tons worth.  We’ve already mixed it into our exterior raised beds, filled an empty interior greenhouse raised bed and stored as much of it as we could in bins and pots in the greenhouse for use later this season.  Those round pots are the size that full grown trees are sold in.  I think we’re all set!

Asparagus came early this year, but I’m not complaining!  By the time the Farmer’s Market opens next month it will probably all be gone.   More for us!   Bacon wrapped asparagus with Siracha dipping sauce.  Yum.

Beatrice says ‘hey’ as she heads to the sheep feeding pen for some grain.  Jenna brings up the rear those mornings that they need a little prompt.  The grass is growing again, so they don’t always notice when it’s feeding time.

We’ve been working a lot in the garden lately.  Jenna joins us and watches Brian work.  She’s so attached to him, he never leaves her sight.  I always know where he’s at in the yard by noticing where her gaze is focused.  She’s probably hoping they’ll go on an adventure together and doesn’t want to miss out.  She begrudgingly greets me first thing in the AM when we’re heading out to the pasture.  After that, it’s all about Brian.  I swear she watches to make sure he doesn’t float away.

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We had dinner two hours from here last night … so totally worth it!  We got invited to an evening of the celebrity chef tour, which is a fundraiser for the James Beard Foundation.  The first course was a beef dish prepared by Ashton Carter, the host chef.  Second course was duck heart prepared by Top Chef Masters contestant Jen Carroll.  Third course was a duo of lamb prepared by Top Chef Masters finalist Mike Isabella.  Next came a smoked trout salad from National Geographic fellow Barton Seaver.  Dessert was a play on french toast prepared by Next Great Baker winner Dana Herbert.  One of our most memorable meals ever!

http://bdtonline.com/local/x1437245134/Celebrity-chefs-prepare-distinct-dishes-for-good-cause

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Since we start our tomato and pepper seeds crazy early, we’ve been potting them up and storing them in the greenhouse until our last frost date.  It’s been so crazy warm lately, we really want to move them to the back deck for the season but have another 5 weeks until that’s safe.

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Our raised beds got weedy over the winter.  We had to hoe up the weeds, separate the plants and roots from the dirt then rake in some new soil.  We planted sugar snap, snow and shelling peas, two kinds of purple carrots, spinach and swiss chard.  The garlic we planted last October is looking fantastic.

Bottlefed as a lamb, Kat is always one of the first sheep to greet me when I come into the pasture.  She’s very chatty.   She doesn’t say baaa, she says maaa.  Often and loudly.   See how smooth she is?  She’s a hair sheep.  When the shearer comes in a week or two she’ll watch happily from the sidelines.

Jessica (our cow) and Milos (one of our karakachans) enjoy a springtime nap under a stand of trees.  He naps a lot during the day because he’s up at night keeping everyone safe.  His sister FiFi is a little wary of Jessica, I’m sure it’s because of her size.  Milos keeps her in line, he doesn’t let her bully anyone.  They obviously are comfortable around each other.